Compton School Police 'Authorized' to Use AR-15's This Year

Beginning this school year, campus police in the Compton neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles will be “authorized” to buy and use AR-15s, the guns often misconstrued as “assault rifles” by gun control advocates.

Police officers doing so must “pass an internal selection process,” and can then have the rifles “in their patrol cars while on duty,” according to a report by Southern California Public Radio 89.3 KPCC.

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Reporter Rina Palta notes that the acquisition of AR-15s is the outcome of “a school board policy passed in July.” The policy was supported by Compton Unified Police Chief William Wu, who said the “objective” in acquiring the rifles is to “save lives.”

He said the rifles will leave police better prepared to respond to a “terrorist attack or mass shooting.”

Wu added: “With handguns you’d be lucky to hit accurately at 25 yards. With a rifle in the hands of a trained person, you can go 50, 100 yards accurately.”

Compton Democratic Club founder Francisco Orozco disagreed with the move, saying: “The school police has been very notorious and in reality has never had to shoot anyone before. So this escalation of weapons we feel is very unnecessary.”

Orozco added: “The school police has not even earned the right to carry handguns.”